02/25/1991 Meeting (2) - Laserfiche WebLink

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e of the opening of streets to traffic. This proposal will help maintain Eu- gene's livability. Jim Torrey, 2545 Chuckanut Street, indicated that visibility downtown is the key problem which needs to be addressed in the solution to downtown and spoke in favor of this proposal. He noted that the plan represents a compromise within the community and strongly supports allowing the community to vote on the plan in May. Barry Jordan, 2180 Monroe Street, identified several of the problems which exist on the mall, including concerns for citizen safety. He encouraged the council to open downtown to vehicular traffic. Jon Voget, 999 Willamette Street, said that he frequently visits the downtown mall and spoke in favor of the redesign proposal. Tom Hoyt, 460 Palomino Drive, noted that he because he works downtown he has the opportunity to spend a lot of time at the mall. Whatever the solution, he urged the council not to allow the mall return to its pre-mall conditions. He described the current condition of the mall as unsatisfactory and encour- aged the council to look at the city of Seaside as a good model for a suc- cessful downtown. e Dan Tucci, Task Force downtown. pedestrian 2472 Pioneer Pike, identified himself as a member of the Retail (RTF) and said that improved access is vital to the success of He noted that history has demonstrated the declining popularity of malls and urged council support for this plan. . Roger Neustadter, 135 West Broadway, noting that it would be impossible to improve the vitality of downtown without enhanced access and circulation, testified in favor of the proposal. He urged the council to clarify what the term "convertibility" means in the context of this plan. Peter Bartel, 2532.Nixon Street, speaking as a representative of both the RTF and the Downtown Design Committee, spoke in favor of the plan. He highlight- ed East Broadway as a key portion of downtown redesign and said that high parking turnover would drastically improve downtown circulation. He reminded the council that this plan is only one component of a more comprehensive strategy to Eugene's revitalization. Richard Greene, 766 13th Avenue, indicated his support for this plan and encouraged the council to continue seeking new and innovative strategies to downtown revitalization. Peg Allison, 2174 Keith Way, speaking as a co-owner of Kids Edition, a small retail business located downtown, testified in favor of opening Willamette Street to automobile traffic and encouraged the council to adopt the proposal and send it to the voters for approval. Bill Blair, 350 Pearl Street, testified in support of the conceptual redesign plan. He emphasized that Eugene needs to offer an exciting downtown atmo- e MINUTES--Eugene City Council February 25, 1991 Page 3